Bringing you news of projects at the JICA Yokohama Center and reports on trainee activities! For details, see the JICA Yokohama website → http://www.jica.go.jp/yokohama/ August 2015 issue Visit Paid by Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino! In the morning of June 18, Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino visited the JICA Yokohama Japanese Overseas Migration Museum. This was the second visit to the Museum for Prince Akishino, the first being in September 2006 prior to a trip to Paraguay, and was the first visit for Princess Akishino. Their Imperial Highnesses looked around the Museum's permanent exhibition, as well as the current planned exhibition titled "The World of Tomoo Handa, an Immigrant Painter.“ Their Imperial Highnesses received explanations on the roles Japanese communities in Brazil have played, given by Hirochika Nakamaki, Director of the National Museum of Ethnology, Masako Iino, Professor Emeritus at Tsuda College, and Masato Ninomiya, Professor at Sao Paulo University, with attendance of JICA President Tanaka and JICA Yokohama Director General Obata. The Prince and Princess actively listened to the briefing by the three academic experts. Furthermore, on seeing the entries to the World Children's Picture Contest and touring an exhibition named "Wonderful Food and Agriculture: Pillars of the Globe," Princess Akishino commented that she felt these exhibits attractive to children as well. Trainees Experience Community Development Activities in Saihara, Uenohara City, Yamanashi Prefecture Twelve local administrators and NGO staff members from six countries and regions, namely Afghanistan, Kosovo, Sudan, Tanzania, the Marshall Islands, and Colombia, participated in a training program in Saihara Community, located in Uenohara City, Yamanashi Prefecture, with a population of some 600 people. Through the workshop and practice in this program, the trainees were expected to acquire the techniques of community facilitation, such as approaches for rediscovering local resources and to utilize the learnings and experiences when they take part in community development activities in their homelands. While the trainees studied through lectures and site visits, there were also opportunities for mutual learning. They took part in community events and looked around the community guided by local residents to deepen their understanding of the town, and made presentations to the locals on what they learned there. This was a very fruitful field experience for the trainees. Pretraining in Japan for Teachers' Overseas Training Program in Tanzania Last June the first session of pretraining took place in Japan for the Teachers' Overseas Training Program scheduled in Tanzania. A total of 10 teachers participate in the program this year, nine from Kanagawa Pref. and one from Yamanashi Pref. At their first meeting, the participants initially looked nervous, but later enjoyed a friendly and relaxed atmosphere with the progress of self introduction and activities. In the future, the teachers will participate in three pretraining sessions in Japan and receive voluntary training for advance preparation, and eventually take part in the overseas training in Tanzania in August. Trainees of Armenian Local Specialties and Local Brand Development Course Visit Katsunuma Town, Koshu City, Yamanashi Pref. In June, eight trainees taking part in the training course for the development of Armenian local specialties and local brands, of which JICA Yokohama in charge, visited a winery in Katsunuma Town, Koshu City, Yamanashi Prefecture for the purpose of case study in Japan. One of the trainees, Gegam Petrosyan, President of the Small and Medium Entrepreneurship Development National Center of Armenia, told that the wine industry in Armenia should oriented toward providing value-added products rather than selling mass products, and that the visit was very valuable for his future activities. VOL.08 Exhibition of Tomoo Handa's works Food and Agriculture Exhibition JICA Yokohama International Center Public Relations
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Bringing you news of projects at the JICA Yokohama Center and reports on trainee activities! For details, see the JICA Yokohama website → http://www.jica.go.jp/yokohama/
August 2015 issue
Visit Paid by Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino!
In the morning of June 18, Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino visited the JICA Yokohama Japanese Overseas Migration Museum. This was the second visit to the Museum for Prince Akishino, the first being in September 2006 prior to a trip to Paraguay, and was the first visit for Princess Akishino. Their Imperial Highnesses looked around the Museum's permanent exhibition, as well as the current planned exhibition titled "The World of Tomoo Handa, an Immigrant Painter.“
Their Imperial Highnesses received explanations on the roles Japanese communities in Brazil have
played, given by Hirochika Nakamaki, Director of the National Museum of Ethnology, Masako Iino,
Professor Emeritus at Tsuda College, and Masato Ninomiya, Professor at Sao Paulo University, with
attendance of JICA President Tanaka and JICA Yokohama Director General Obata. The Prince and Princess
actively listened to the briefing by the three academic experts. Furthermore, on seeing the entries to the
World Children's Picture Contest and touring an exhibition named "Wonderful Food and Agriculture: Pillars
of the Globe," Princess Akishino commented that she felt these exhibits attractive to children as well.
Trainees Experience Community Development Activities in Saihara, Uenohara City, Yamanashi Prefecture
Twelve local administrators and NGO staff members from six countries and regions, namely Afghanistan, Kosovo, Sudan, Tanzania, the Marshall Islands, and Colombia, participated in a training program in Saihara Community, located in Uenohara City, Yamanashi Prefecture, with a population of some 600 people. Through the workshop and practice in this program, the trainees were expected to acquire the techniques of community facilitation, such as approaches for rediscovering local resources and to utilize the learnings and experiences when they take part in community development activities in their homelands. While the trainees studied through lectures and site visits, there were also opportunities for mutual learning. They took part in community events and looked around the community guided by local residents to deepen their understanding of the town, and made presentations to the locals on what they learned there. This was a very fruitful field experience for the trainees.
Pretraining in Japan for Teachers' Overseas Training
Program in Tanzania Last June the first session of pretraining took place in Japan for the Teachers' Overseas Training Program scheduled in Tanzania. A total of 10 teachers participate in the program this year, nine from Kanagawa Pref. and one from Yamanashi Pref. At their first meeting, the participants initially looked nervous, but later enjoyed a friendly and relaxed atmosphere with the progress of self introduction and activities. In the future, the teachers will participate in three pretraining sessions in Japan and receive voluntary training for advance preparation, and eventually take part in the overseas training in Tanzania in August.
Trainees of Armenian Local Specialties and Local Brand Development Course Visit
Katsunuma Town, Koshu City, Yamanashi Pref. In June, eight trainees taking part in the training course for the development of Armenian local specialties and local brands, of which JICA Yokohama in charge, visited a winery in Katsunuma Town, Koshu City, Yamanashi Prefecture for the purpose of case study in Japan. One of the trainees, Gegam Petrosyan, President of the Small and Medium Entrepreneurship Development National Center of Armenia, told that the wine industry in Armenia should oriented toward providing value-added products rather than selling mass products, and that the visit was very valuable for his future activities.
VOL.08
Exhibition of Tomoo Handa's works
Food and Agriculture Exhibition
JICA Yokohama International Center Public Relations
African Trainees Visit School! In July, eleven trainees from Africa visited Akiba Elementary School in Totsuka Ward, Yokohama City. The visit was arranged as part of the training course "African Region Urban Waterworks Engineering" conducted in collaboration with the Yokohama City Water Works Bureau and Yokohama Water Company Limited. The trainees introduced themselves, sometimes talking in Japanese language they have learned in Japan, and took part in a classroom lesson on water service conducted by staff from the Water Works Bureau. The trainees taught elementary school students about water production, as well as the preciousness of water.
Disaster Reduction Businesses in Kanagawa Visit Philippines to Observe Disaster Preparedness Efforts
This is the first program JICA Yokohama planned and implemented as part of its support for small- and medium-sized enterprises starting overseas operations. In June, six SMEs, based in Kanagawa Prefecture and selling products and equipment for disaster preparedness and emergency responses in disasters, visited disaster-related government agencies of the Philippines, namely, the Office of Civil Defense, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, and the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration. During the tour, the participants collected information on local efforts for disaster reduction and looked around the fields.
Award-Winner Visits Japan from Bangladesh to Attend Commendation Ceremony of 18th Kanagawa Biennial World Children's Art Exhibition Supported by JICA
The commendation ceremony of the 18th Kanagawa Biennial World Children's Art Exhibition was held in July at Earth Plaza (Kanagawa Plaza for Global Citizenship) in Yokohama City. JICA supports the exhibition of children's paintings and provides the JICA President's Award to eight excellent entries (six entries from overseas and two from Kanagawa Prefecture). On the day of the ceremony, JICA Yokohama Director General Obata served as the presenter. Among the award-winners, Naihrit Baral, a boy aged 7, came to Japan with his three family members to attend the ceremony and stayed at JICA Yokohama. Although the weather was not that nice because of the rainy season, they enjoyed the memorable visit to Japan sightseeing in the Minatomirai area and Kamakura.
Yokohama's Water Works Technology Introduced to Water Supply Operators in
Vietnam and Cambodia Last June in Hue Province, Vietnam, the Yokohama City Water Works Bureau and Thua Thien Hue Construction and Water Supply State-owned Company Limited (HueWACO) jointly held a workshop to introduce excellent water supply technologies of Japanese companies. The workshop was organized as part of the activities of grassroots technical cooperation, categorized as a special project for revitalization of local economy, named "Vietnam - Yokohama ‘Safety Water’ Supply Management Project." A total of 120 participants took part in the workshop, coming from 40 water supply operators and companies in Vietnam and Cambodia, demonstrating a high interest in the technologies of the private sector in Yokohama City. Also, vigorous discussion took place in the workshop concerning introduction of Yokohama City's water supply technologies in Vietnam and Cambodia.
Afghan Ambassador to Japan Cheers on JICA Trainees Studying at YCU
The Afghan ambassador to Japan, Sayed Mohammad Amin Fatimie, visited in May Kihara Institute for Biological Research, Yokohama City University. Currently, four JICA trainees from Afghanistan are studying at Kihara Institute as part of the Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS) and the Project for the Promotion and Enhancement of the Afghan Capacity for Effective Development (PEACE).
The institute is working on a project for cultivar improvement of the wheat
that Professor Hitoshi Kihara brought from Afghanistan to Japan 50 years ago.
The project aims to bring back the improved wheat to Afghanistan for
cultivation. Ambassador Fatimie had a friendly talk with YCU President Kubota,
Vice President Shigeta, Professor Ban as academic supervisor, and international
students about the efforts of the institute greatly contributing to fostering
young researchers in Afghanistan. The ambassador also toured the laboratory
and farm field.
■Published by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, Yokohama International Center 2-3-1 Shin-Minato, Naka-ku, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture 231-0001 ■Publishing Section: General Affairs Department TEL/045-663-3252 FAX/045-663-3265
